Can Alibaba hit Chinese lottery jackpot after acquisition?

A subsidiary of Chinese online retail giant Alibaba Group is to acquire control of Hong Kong-listed lottery operator AGTech.

The deal, worth around HK$2.39bn (€279.5m/$308.0m), will see Ali Fortune Investment, which is 60 per-cent owned by Alibaba, buy around 59.5 per cent of AGTech.

China Money Network reported that Alibaba plans to further expand the company's lottery, games, hardware and distribution in China, potentially leveraging the internet giant's mobile payment methods, e-commerce channels and various other platforms to help AGTech expand aggressively.

Alibaba is said to be attracted by the possibility of lifting lottery participation in mainland China, which is dwarfed by the 56 per cent rate in Hong Kong. The mainland authorities last year ordered a suspension of online sales of tickets for China’s two official lotteries – the welfare lottery and the sports lottery – as part of a crackdown on fraud.